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Movies / On DVD / Mr. Smith Goes To Washington
Mr. Smith Goes To Washington

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Mr. Smith Goes To Washington (1939)

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Reviews Counted:28

Fresh:27

Rotten:1

Average Rating:8.3/10

Runtime: 2 hrs 10 mins

Genre: Dramas

Synopsis: Two slimy fat-cat legislators recruit Jefferson Smith, an innocent and staunchly principled Montana scout leader, as the state's new Senator, hoping to exploit his naviete and community pride to... Two slimy fat-cat legislators recruit Jefferson Smith, an innocent and staunchly principled Montana scout leader, as the state's new Senator, hoping to exploit his naviete and community pride to bring home pork-barrel funds. Once he ascends to Capitol Hill, however, Mr. Smith finds nothing but deep-rooted corruption in Washington, D.C., and, absolutely refusing to submit to cynicism, he tirelessly takes the message of the American people right to their out-of-touch representatives. Based on Lewis R. Foster's novel THE GENTLEMAN FROM MONTANA. Academy Award Nominations: 11, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor (James Stewart), Best Supporting Actor (Harry Carey). Academy Awards: Best Original Story (Lewis R. Foster). [More]

Starring: Jean Arthur, James Stewart, Claude Rains, Edward Arnold

Starring: Jean Arthur, James Stewart, Claude Rains, Edward Arnold, Thomas Mitchell, Beulah Bondi, Guy Kibbee, H.B. Warner, Harry Carey, Astrid Allwyn, Ruth Donnelly, Grant Mitchell, Porter Hall, Pierre Watkin, Charles Lane, William Demarest, Jack Carson, Maurice Costello, Russell Simpson, Stanley Andrews, Alan Bridge, Edmund Cobb, Fredrick Burton, Vera Lewis, Ann Doran, Lloyd Whitlock

Director: Frank Capra

Director: Frank Capra
Screenwriter: Sidney Buchman
Story: Lewis R. Foster
Producer: Frank Capra
Composer: Dimitri Tiomkin

[See More Credits]

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Release:

Dec 9, 2008

[DVD Details]
 
 
  • Jean Arthur, James Stewart and Claude Rains star in Frank Capra's MR. SMITH GOES TO WASHINGTON, theaward-winning 1939 classic about an idealistic, small town senator who heads to Washington and suddenly finds himself single-handedly battling ruthless politicans out to destroy him. When Frank Capradecided to film the novel "The Gentleman From Montana", he ran into an obstacle Director Rouben Mamoulian owned the rights to the story. Unwilling to sell, Mamoulian eventually traded the material toColumbia on the condition that he be allowed to direct Golden Boy. As Capra began working on the film, now called MR. SMITH GOES TO WASHINGTON, it was suggested that Gary Copper, the star of Mr. Deeds Goes to Town, take the lead. Capra selected Jimmy Stewart instead and the film solidified Stewart's movie career, garnering him his first Academy Award(r) nomination. Receiving a total of eleven 1939 Oscar(r) nominations (including Best Picture and Best Director), and winning one (Best Motion Picture Story), MR. SMITH GOES TO WASHINGTON is considered one of Capra's, Stewart's and Columbia's finest films. It also marked the end of an era. It was Capra's final film for the studio.
  • Source: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
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    Reviews for Mr. Smith Goes To Washington

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    21 - 29 (sorted by date)
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    No review available.

    comment Comment
    08/08/02
    Cory Cheney
    Cory Cheney
    Urban Tulsa Weekly

    definitely a highlight of both Stewart and Capra's careers

    comment Comment
    07/29/02
    James Sanford
    James Sanford
    Kalamazoo Gazette

    No review available.

    comment Comment
    07/26/02
    Bob Grimm
    Bob Grimm
    Las Vegas Mercury

    Fine performances are backed by a large and unusually impressive supporting cast.

    Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
    06/05/02
    Boxoffice Magazine

    Frank Capra was to movies what Norman Rockwell was to illustration; he gave us a vision of our national identity that never ignored the challenges we face, although it was idealistic about our ability to meet them.

    Full Review Source: Movie Mom at Yahoo! Movies | comment Comment
    04/20/02
    Nell Minow
    Nell Minow
    Movie Mom at Yahoo! Movies

    Captures the inner-workings of Washington in a profound way.

    Full Review Source: Apollo Guide | comment Comment
    11/18/01
    Jamie Gillies
    Jamie Gillies
    Apollo Guide

    No review available.

    comment Comment
    01/01/01
    Robert Roten
    Robert Roten
    Laramie Movie Scope

    While Mr. Smith Goes to Washington is the most moral of films, it is so artfully filled with real emotion that it never becomes heavy-handed.

    Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
    01/01/00
    TV Guide's Movie Guide

    Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939) is producer/director Frank Capra's classic comedy-drama, and considered by many to be his greatest achievement in film (and reminiscent of

    Full Review Source: Tim Dirks' The Greatest Films | comment Comment
    01/01/00
    Tim Dirks
    Tim Dirks
    Tim Dirks' The Greatest Films
     
     
    21 - 29 (sorted by date)
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